The present invention relates to checkout systems, and in particular to an operator-unassisted checkout of randomly disposed articles in a container in a checkout area of a supermarket or the like, performed without directly contacting the articles in the container.
Since U.S. Pat. No. 2,919,851, there have been a variety of checkout systems Patented with the intention of automating and speeding up the checkout system used in supermarkets, department stores, and the like. To the extent that such a checkout system can be automated and operator assistance dispensed with (except in unusual cases where the unassisted procedure for one reason or another goes awry), there exists a vast potential for reduced labor costs. To the extent that such an automated system can operate faster than a manual system, the store profits by requiring fewer checkout lanes and the customer profits from a faster checkout. Other advantages likewise flow from an automated checkout system, including greater accuracy, better inventory control, and the like.
The aforesaid U.S. Pat. No. 2,919,851 discloses two embodiments of an automated checkout system. In one embodiment, a tag associated with each article must be manually placed in a card reader so as to communicate the requisite information contained on the tag to the checkout system. Such a serial manual handling of the articles to be purchased leads to a slow and laborious checkout process, whether performed by the customer or by a store employee. In a second embodiment, however, the articles containing the tags are simply placed promiscuously in a container (such as a checkout cart), and the system utilizes a shadow detector unit to enable reading of the tags. If some of the tags are not in a proper disposition for reading by the shadow detector unit, the container must be repositioned as many times as necessary so that all of the tags are at one time or another properly disposed for reading. In the event that there is some inconsistency noted by the system (for example, perhaps because one tag had not been read), a store employee must be consulted to determine which of the various articles in the container were not properly read.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a system for operator-unassisted checkout of randomly disposed articles in a container at a checkout area.
Another object is to provide such a system which operates without directly contacting the articles in the container.
A further object is to provide such a system which discriminates between the articles in the container to determine which have not been properly checked out.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide such a system which is inexpensive and easy to manufacture, maintain and operate.